Pipe and tube cleaner



Aug. 13, 1935. M, REMICK 2,011,323

PIPE AND TUBE CLEANER Filed Feb. 8, 1933 Q I L.

12 54 aww Patented Aug. 13, I 1935 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE PIPE AND. TUBE CLEANER Max Remick, Chicago, Ill., minor to Premier Coil Cleaner Co.

Application February 8, 1933, Serial No. 655,756 1 Claim. 225-12) This invention relates to the art of pipe and tube cleaners, and, in its chief intended application, is designed to effect periodic cleaning of the pipes and hose of beer and soft drink dispensing apparatus. With continued long use, such pipes and hose become more or less dirty and clogged with solid matter adhering to the internal walls of the pipes and hose, and the main object of my invention is to provide a very simple and easily manipulated accessory which may be connected on to the draught faucets of a dispensing outfit to thoroughly clean the pipes and hose from such accumulated matter.

My improved cleaner is based on the principle of forcing through the pipes and hose to be cleaned a pressure fluid, preferably a stream of water under pressure, carrying a cleaning material. In accordance with the preferred use of my invention, this cleaning material may be either a body of granular material adapted to scour the internal walls, or a body of spongy material adapted to wipe the internal walls, or, and preferably, both, employed in succession; and in the preferred embodiment of the invention the fluid carrying the cleaning material is caused to flow alternately in opposite directions through the tubular member to be cleaned, the soiled water at each flow being discharged before the flow in the reverse direction is started.

The device of my invention, its manner of manipulation, and the benefits and advantages resulting therefrom will be readily understood by persons familiar with the art from the following detailed description, taken in connection with the accompanying drawing in which I have illustrated a practical and preferred embodiment of the invention, and wherein- Fig. l is a front elevation, partly in section, of

the complete device.

Fig. 2 is a top plan view of the same, partly in horizontal section.

Fig. 3 is a diagrammatic view illustrating the application of the device to a beer dispensing equipment.

Figs. 4, 5 and 6 are diagrammatic views illustrating different positions of the main flow control valve and the directions of flow controlled thereby.

Referring to the drawing, A, B and C designate three upright vessels disposed side by side, and preferably formed with windows, as shown, to indicate the condition of the contents. The intermediate vessel B is supported by a standard In from a base The lower ends of the vessels B and C are connected by a U-shaped pipe l2,

one limb of which may be constituted by the upper tubular portion of the standard It. Intersecting the pipe I2 is a horizontal valve casin l3 having at one end a nipple l4 and equipped with a two-way valve l5 formed with an L-shaped 5 port, the stem l6 of which valve is equipped with a handle I]. Integral with or secured to the upper end of the central vessel B is a vertical valve casing l8 communicating at its lower end with the vessel 10 B and formed with horizontal branch pipes I! and 2|) leading respectively into the upper ends of the vessels A and C, and with other horizontal branches 2| and 22 (Fig; 2) to the former of which is connected an inlet pipe 23 for fluid 1' under pressure, such as water from a city main, and to the latter of which is connected an outlet pipe or nipple 24 for the discharge of soiled wa-. ter. The inlet pipe 23 has a lateral nipple 25 for connection to a hose or pipe leading from the go water main, and, in the preferred form of the invention, the outer end of the inlet pipe is fitted with an ejector nozzle 26 for a purpose later described.

Fitted to the valve casing I8 is a rotary three- 25 way valve 21 that is formed with opposite horizontal ports 28 and 29, and with a vertical port 30 that communicates at its upper end with the port 29 and opens through the lower end of the valve. The stem 3| of the valve 21 is equipped with a handle 32. To the lower end of the vessel A is connected a pipe 35 terminating in a nip- Die 36.

Within the vessel C is a body of granular scouring material, which may consist of small balls 35 or pearls 33 of glass, bakelite, pearlite, etc., gravel, or any other suitable scouring medium. Within the vessel B is a body of wiping material, preferably consisting of particles 34 of sponge or small brushes, the particles being of a size to pass 40 freely through the pipe l2 and the tubular member to be cleaned.

' One manner of using the device is diagrammatically illustrated in Fig. 3, which indicates a pair of beer dispensing faucets 31 and 38 with 45 pipes or hose 39 and 40 extending down into a basement and normally connected to barrels or 'casks 4| and 42 containing the beer or other beverage to be dispensed from the faucets 31 and 38. When the cleaner is to be used, the nipples l0 l4 and 36 are connected by hose 43 and 44 respectively to the faucets 31 and 38, and the lower ends of the hose 39 and 40 are disconnected from the barrels or casks 4| and 42 and connected together by a pipe or hose 45, thereby providing I a continuous flow passage that includes the dispensing tubes 89 and and their faucets.

With the valves 21 and it set to the positions shown in Fig. 2, the water from the main is turned on and fiows into and through the vessel C carrying the scouring material '33 with it, down through the right half of the pipe E2, the valve IS, the nipple I4, hose l3, tubes 39, and tit, hose ll, nipple 36, pipe 35. into and through vessel A, thence through branch pipe l9, valve port 29, branch 22 and discharge nipple 2t, and through a discharge hose or pipe to the sewer. The granular scouring material 33 is prevented from escaping from the vessel A by a screen lid interposed across the top of said vessel. During this operation some of the waste water may fiow down through the port 30 into the intermediatevessel B, but it merely remains static in said vessel, since the outflow from the latter is blocked at this time by the valve E5.

The valve 21 is then turned clockwise ninety degrees to the position shown in Fig. 4. This causes a reverse fiow from vessel A to vessel C which is maintained until all of the securing material has been returned to vessel C. This cycle may be repeated as many times'as necessary to thoroughly scour the dispensing tubes or hose.

' The valve 27 is then turned clockwise another ninety degrees to the position shown in Fig. 5,

and the valve is reversed. This reversal of the valve l5 closes the lower end of the vessel C and at the same time opens the lower end 01 the vessel B to the flow passage, so that the water, carrying with it the spongy particles to, flows in the same manner through the same circuit from vessel B to vessel A. The valve 27 is then turned clockwise another ninety degrees to the position shown in Fig. 6, and this reverses the flow, causing the water and spongy particles to return from vessel A to vessel B, the escape of the spongy particles being prevented by a screen in the form of an apertured plate 5! extending across the upper portion of vessel B. A screen 52 similar to the screen 50 across the upper part of vessel 0 prevents the escape of 'the granular material during the return fiow of the latter.

The last described cycle is repeated several times so as to permit the sponges 3% to thoroughly wipe ofi and carry away any remaining dirt not previously dislodged by the scouring material 33.

When the dispensing tubes and faucets have been thoroughly cleaned in the manner above the water is shut oil, the hose 33, dd and 45 are removed, and the tubes as, as are reconnected to the barrels or casks M, 32.

Where the water pressure may be low and insufl'icient to rapidly effect the cleaning operaa cleaning device that actress ticri above described, its action may be assisted by the injector nozzle 26 which, in practice, will be connected to a drum containing oxygen, hydrogen, carbon dioxide, or other compressed gas, or such gas alonemay be used where a supply oi water under pressure is not available. Any fluid under pressure that will carry cleaning material back and forth through the tubular memher to be cleaned may be employed; and, while I have described the device as preferably employing both the scouring and wiping agents, it is evident that either alone may be used to advantage without the other.

While an object of the invention is to provide will function efiiciently with mechanical cleaning agents, such as the granular and spongy materials described, and thus do away with which require thorough rinsing of the pipes and tubes with clean water after use, it is evident that in situations where the water pressure may be inadequate to efiectively force the mechanical agents back and forth with a good scouring action, soluble chemical cleaning agents may be employed, since the apparatus is fully capable of functioning with such chemical agents.

It will be evident to those skilled in the art that the specific structural details of the device may be widely varied without departing from its operative principle, or sacrificing any of the advantages secured thereby. Hence I do not limit the invention to the particular embodiment presented for purposes of illustration, but reserve all such variations, modifications and mechanical equivalents as fall within the spirit and purview of the claim.

I claim:

In a cleaner of the type described, the combination of a pair 01 upright vessels, a pipe connecting the lower ends of said zontal valve casing intersecting said pipe and having at one end thereof a nipple adapted for connection to one end of a tubular member to be cleaned, a valve in said casing formed with an L-shaped port adapted to said vessels with said nipple, a third upright vessel adapted for connection at its lower end to the other end of said tubular member, an inlet pipe for a pressure fluid, a discharge pipe for soiled fluid from said vessels and tubular member, and valve-controlled means co-operating with said valve and with said inlet and discharge pipes and connected into the upper ends of said vessels for directing said fluid through either of said pair of vessels, said tubular member, and said third vessel alternately in opposite directio MAX REMECK.

vessels, a horithe use oi chemical cleaners connect either oi tie 

